Industry

IFC Midnight announced that the company is acquiring North American distribution rights to director Todd Rohal’s comedy THE CATECHISM CATACLYSM. The company also acquired television and digital rights for the picture in France, Benelux, Spain, Portugal, East-Central Europe, Turkey, and Greece. The film, which was also written by Rohal, stars Steve Little (EASTBOUND & DOWN), Robert Longstreet (SEPTIEN), and Wally Dalton (THE OFF HOURS). Longstreet also executive produced the project, and David Gordon Green, Megan Griffiths, Jody Hill, Lacey Leavitt, Danny McBride, and Matt Reilly additionally served as producers. The film world premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and is also scheduled to play at the upcoming 2011 SXSW Film Festival in the Emerging Visions section.

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Tribeca Enterprises announced that Tribeca Film will expand to commercially release 26 films over the next year, more than double the number of titles released in 2010. The comprehensive distribution label for independent film also announced that it acquired U.S. rights to nine new titles to be released across multiple platforms. The curated selection of films includes many genres and features stars including Zach Braff, Vincent Gallo and Zoe Kravitz and filmmakers such as Peter Mullan, Jerzy Skolimowski and Vincent D’Onofrio.

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Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the rights in North America, Australia and New Zealand to Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut, HIGHER GROUND.  Academy Award(R) nominee Vera Farmiga also stars in the film, alongside Academy Award(R) nominee John Hawkes, Donna Murphy, and Joshua Leonard.  Carolyn S. Briggs and Tim Metcalfe penned the script based on Briggs’ memoir “This Dark World: A Memoir of Salvation Found and Lost.” HIGHER GROUND was in US dramatic competition at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.

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Music Box Films announced that it has acquired all US Theatrical, DVD, and Digital Rights to Liz Garbus’ film Bobby Fischer Against the World which recently screened at this year’s Sundance Film Festival in the prestigious Documentary Premieres Section. The deal was negotiated by David Koh & Stanley Buchthal of LM Media GmbH on behalf of the Director and Producers along with Ed Arentz & Bill Schopf of Music Box Films. HBO Documentary Films plans an Academy Qualification followed by a TV broadcast on HBO. A coordinated Theatrical, DVD and Digital Release by Music Box Films will follow. Bobby Fischer Against the World is a co-production of HBO Documentary Film and LM Media GmbH and was Produced & Directed by Liz Garbus. Produced by Stanley Buchthal, Rory Kennedy, Matthew Justus. Executive Produced for HBO by Sheila Nevins. Executive Produced by Dan Cogan, Nick Fraser, Maja Hoffmann, Martin Pieper. Senior Producer for HBO Nancy Abraham. Co-Produced by Christoph Jorg & David Koh. Cinematography by Bob Chappell. Edited by Karen Schmeer and Michael Levine. Music Composed by Philip Sheppard.

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IFC Midnight is partnering with MPI Media Group and its subsidiary Dark Sky Films to release director Jim Mickle’s (MULBERRY STREET) STAKE LAND. The critically-acclaimed apocalyptic thriller was produced by Larry Fessenden, Peter Phok, Adam Folk, Brent Kunkle and Derek Curl.  STAKE LAND stars Connor Paolo (“Gossip Girl”), Danielle Harris (HATCHET II), Kelly McGillis (THE ACCUSED), Nick Damici, and Michael Cerveris (FRINGE). Damici and Mickle co-wrote the screenplay, which was the winner of the Midnight Madness Audience Award at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival.  STAKE LAND will have a nationwide theatrical platform release beginning April 22nd, with simultaneous nationwide release on demand.

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Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, announced the filmmakers and film projects for its 10th annual Directors Lab, sponsored by Kodak.  Taking place in Los Angeles from now until the end of March, the Directors Lab is an intensive nine-week program designed to assist directors with strong, original voices develop new narrative feature films, improve their craft, and advance their filmmaking careers in a nurturing yet challenging creative environment.  This year’s Lab Mentors include Keith Gordon (The Singing Detective, Waking the Dead), Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body, Girl Fight), and Jeremy Podeswa (The Pacific, Fugitive Pieces).

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Screen Media Films has acquired North American rights to FUBAR: BALLS TO THE WALL, Michael Dowse’s hilarious look into the lives of headbangers Dean and Terry that stars Paul J. Spence and David Lawrence, prior to its U.S. premiere at the 2011 SXSW Film Festival.  The deal was announced by the company’s President, Robert Baruc, who plans to release the film on VOD and home video on April 19, 2011.

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Anchor Bay has reportedly acquired controversial Dito Montiel’s controversial cop drama The Son Of No One, which premiered at 2011 Sundance Film Festival. The film stars Channing Tatum, Tracy Morgan, Katie Holmes, Ray Liotta, with Juliette Binoche and Al Pacino and was the subject of numerous articles that claimed an “exodus” of walk outs at an early Sundance Film Festival screening

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Oscilloscope Laboratories has acquired Evan Glodell’s directorial debut BELLFLOWER, which screened in the NEXT category at 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Oscilloscope plans a U.S. theatrical release this summer.

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In their first 2011 Sundance Film Festival acquisition, Focus Features has picked up worldwide rights to writer-director Dee Rees’ ‘Pariah.’ Pariah screened in the U.S. Dramatic Competition category and featured a cast that includes Adepero Oduye, Pernell Walker, Kim Wayans, Charles Parnell, and Aasha Davis.

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